Hilling gets vote of confidence

January 16, 2002|By Hillary Dickerson

Hilling met the board's expectations on 26 of the 28 line items, according to the survey released publicly Tuesday. It was on two out of the four evaluation points under board relations that the superintendent fell below the board's expectations.

The board finished its open session business by 9 p.m. Monday, immediately going into closed session - as requested by Hilling - for the formal annual evaluation proceeding. The procedure initially was scheduled to take place last month but was postponed after the board was unable to agree on the adopted evaluation tool.

Two hours later the board reconvened in open session, with only board members and Hilling knowing what had happened behind closed doors. Under the Michigan Open Meetings Law, the board is permitted to conduct an evaluation in executive session if so requested by the individual involved.

Speaking on behalf of himself and his colleagues, Hoyner maintained that Hilling has the full support of the board. "The board of education gave the superintendent unanimous approval and support, and agreed to continue to work with him as we lead our school district through the many successes and challenges that lie ahead."

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Hilling, who just marked his one-year anniversary with GCS, was present throughout the entire closed proceeding, which also involved all seven board members - Hoyner, Chris Collins, Marilyn Crawford, Russ Soffredine, Natalie Davis, Linda Davis and Scot Zimmerman. Individually, board members were expected to have completed evaluation worksheets in hand to guide the evening's discussion. The board finished a final evaluation together, the results of which Hoyner shared Tuesday.

The only two categories where the combined board effort showed Hilling's performance to be below expectations were marked under board relations. The two specific areas: "Encourages and maintains a harmonious and positive working relationship with board members;" and "Offers professional advice to the board, with appropriate recommendations based on thorough study and analysis."

The evaluation and accompanying comments from Hoyner made no reference to Hilling's part in the ongoing grant controversy within the school district, an issue which remains under investigation by the board and representatives of the Michigan Education Association. (See related story.) The superintendent, who earns $95,000 a year, was one of the four, full-year, salaried Central Office employees who received grant compensation, a fact discovered in a finance committee meeting last October.

Hilling has since volunteered to refund the $3,686 to the district. In the weeks the grant issue played out, at the November board meeting, Hilling read a prepared statement outlining his intention to be the first of the four to agree to return the money. He said, "This incident happened on my watch and as Harry Truman was often quoted, 'The buck stops here' - at my desk. Therefore, I will accept the responsibility for any perceived wrongdoing! I screwed up!"

In the copy of the evaluation provided to the Herald Times following the meeting, Hoyner outlined Hilling's strengths as being "community relations, district finance and building." No explanation was given for the reference to "building."

"Both the board of education and the superintendent realized that the evaluation process should be a learning instrument used to improve performance," said Hoyner. "Therefore, the mood was both positive and constructive, and Mr. Hilling displayed great receptiveness and professionalism throughout the evaluation."

Hilling began his two-and-a-half year contract with GCS last January. His contract will be up for renewal in June of 2003.